Reflection on our trip

A little summary for you all reflecting on our past year...

Things we’ve done
- Eaten grasshoppers in Mexico
- Wrestled anacondas and cobras in Bolivia
- Learned to dive in Utila, Honduras
- Marveled at the salt flats in Bolivia
- Braved San Pedro prison in Bolivia (and refused the opportunity to buy cocaine from there)
- Loki La Paz. Enough said.
- Climbed an active volcano in Guatemala and melted trainers over lava
- Alice has been splattered by cow pat, tripped over elephant poo and fallen into monkey poo
- Visited Great Barrier reef and dived there
- Met Marvin, the beautiful Maori Wrasse
- Dived the Yongala ship wreck, off the coast of Ayre, Australia
- Scaled Cerro Fitz Roy up 700m, and down again walking 27km in one day, Argentina
- Conquered the Inca Trail in Peru (and survived)
- Survived Coober Pedy in Australia
- Said hello to alligators and caimans in Bolivia
- Conversed with Tibetan refugee monks in McLeod Ganj, India
- Ridden elephants and cuddled tigers in Chiang Mai, Bangkok
- Visited the Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng prison in Cambodia
- J was pick-pocketed by a monkey in Bali
- Slept in a 5* hotel in Australia, courtesy of 3 random Aussie boys
- Cuddled koala bears and kangeroos
- Alice had an ECG and ultra-sound to diagnose tonsilitis, Vietnam
- Visited (and adored) the Taj Mahal in Agra, India
- Seen public cremations in Varanasi, India
- Practised yoga (badly) on a rooftop at the foot of the Himalayas, India
- Learned Tango (well almost) in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Drove a Big Rig at full speed down the highway at night in the Australian outback (plus turning round and parking). All without hitting any kangeroos. Or camels.
- Walked among the millions of penguins in Peurto Madryn, Argentina
- Partied all night at Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan, Thailand
- Climbed the Petronas Twin Towers, well 170 metres up to level 41 (out of 88) in KL, Malaysia
- Snorkled with seals on South Island, NZ
- Made our own tribal necklaces out of cow bone, NZ
- Had our only bath of the year at the hot water beach on North Island, NZ
- Went tubing in Laos and lived
- Cruised up mountains on the back of motorbikes to watch the sunset in Udiapur, India
- Climbed the Fox Glaicer in torrential rain, South Island, NZ
- Took a boat ride UNDER one of the waterfalls at Iguazu Falls, Argentina

Things we’ve learnt
- Tequila is wrong
- Alice is responsible for Imodium’s profits this year
- When someone buys you a hotel room, they intend on sleeping in it with you
- Alice isn’t good hungry/full/tired/cold/hot…
- J eats toothpaste
- Dirty washing packs down smaller than clean laundry
- If you put clothes back in your bag they come out clean after about 3 days
- It’s acceptable to wear a top for 3-4 days in a row with lots of sweating
- Hayley loses stuff (especially sunglasses)!
- Australian boys have a few special talents
- You can get a litre of very drinkable red wine for a dollar in Argentina
- Israeli boys are very hairy, and always wear the same shoes
- Goon is great
- You get drunk quicker when at altitude
- If the Cadburys chocolate isn’t made in England don’t eat it
- Vegetarian in South America means meat with vegetables
- The buckets in Koh PhiPhi give you the worst hangover ever
- You can drive 30km with no petrol if no one gets in your way

Times we have wished we were back at home:
- When being vomited on during the bus ride to Cuzco, Peru
- When the shower is so bad you have to wash your hair under the tap (India)
- When the shower is sooo cold it gives you brain freeze (Austraila)
- When there are lots of little cockroaches crawling up your legs and you cant escape them because you're wedged into a train (India)
- When someone steals your passport between countries and the Peruvian officials suggest you bribe them with sexual favours (Peru/Equador)
- When you have a 24hr bus journey from Vietnam to Loas and they FILL the bus with rice and probably illegal drugs
- When you have to pick up your bag yet again and realize that it’s gained 10 kilos since the last time you carried it
- When you get bitten over 300 times in one night by bed bugs
- When you're rammed into a train in the wrong carriage - men only - in Mexico City and they help themselves to your arse

Really winding down these last few days. Arrived in Mumbai safe and sound this morning - it's so much more Western! Big roads, calm traffic that sticks to lanes, leafy suburbs, and we're visiting all Lin's hideouts from Shantaram such as Leopold's. Such a diferent attitude here. But no holy cows, although I've already received a Hindu blessing for Shiva for good luck...

Will write the final entry tomorrow before we leave early for the airport on Monday!

Much love from us both,
Alice and Haz xxxxxxx